Readers experience

As reading textbooks online are one thing, reading a novel for fun or leisure is another. The main different is when reading a textbook, most aren't really reading, they are viewing. Viewing the information to end up with some sort of answer or conclusion.

Textbooks online (netbooks) are usually not read by those in their free time. They are read with a purpose and the purpose is to get answers to complete your assignment or study for a test (perhaps scan or cram very quickly before). They hold pros and cons, but mostly I see online textbooks with a clear purpose as a pro.

In the case of reading for fun, my views change. As a reader, the experience I gain from reading a book online greatly impacts whether or not I want to read at all. Do I want to sit in front of my computer before bed with the bright glow of the screen? No. I want to relax by a soft light not coming from the book so I can eventually get tired and go to bed.

I would rather have the physical book in my hands. I can't really explain why this is so, but it has always been that way for me.

When I see people bringing out their Kindles and iPads on the train, I think what a waste. It's a 30 minute train ride, by the time you turn it on and figure out what your going to read and what page your on; your almost home.

However, if people are still reading though, that is a good thing. Although most of the time I bet those iPad users are surfing through their Facebooks and other useless things.

Online textbooks

Textbooks have always been a part of my life (as with every student) and have certainly come a long way. Most of my youth was spent with a book bag that was filled with a couple light weight books, easy. Throughout the years my books got thicker and thicker and my bag got heavier and heavier.

Most of my recent memories are filled with lugging the books around the city in my book bag, which felt like I was carrying a bag of bricks.

The solution? An online textbook.

This semester I decided to take one of my classes online. Instead of buying the textbook in its traditional medium (physical form), I ordered an ebook for the class or an online textbook. I could eliminate the textbook (and its weight) all together and also pay $90 vs. the $180. That is a lot of money to save.

It certainly impacts the way in which I read or view the information.

The online textbook has pros and cons.

PROS:

• Cheaper, lighter
• Downloads right to your computer as opposed to going to a bookstore to pic it up
• The design makes it extremely easy to look up definitions and key words, as they are searchable
• The searchable key words make assignments easier for me to complete and much faster as apposed to physically turning pages and looking up definitions in the glossary

CONS:

• Somewhat hard to navigate when there are other tabs open. I need to organize my computer screen and space constantly

In all honesty, a online textbook is a good option if you are looking to save money and perhaps find it easier to navigate on your computer. I would definitely consider an online textbook for other classes such as Finance or Accounting. However, when it comes to an English class, I'd rather have the tradition paper book as my medium.